Italian Sausage and Mushroom Risotto

Sometimes I’ll mention a recipe to my father, and if it starts with the words “Italian sausage” I don’t think it matters that much what words comes after, he’s already sold.

We recently made this risotto recipe together (barely adapted from Bon Appetit); dad did the provisioning, the mushroom prep, and sausage cooking, while I sat on a stool stirring the risotto for a half an hour while the rice slowly absorbed the stock, a cupful at a time.

Making risotto requires patience, it cannot be rushed. The rice will only absorb so much liquid at a time; it is the perfect “slow food”. Neither one of us counts patience as a virtue, but perhaps I have a little more when it comes to the long, slow stirring that this dish requires, so that’s the job I happily take.

Method

1 Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage to the pan, spreading it out in an even layer. Do not stir, but allow to brown on one side for a couple minutes. Then stir and allow to brown a little more. Add the mushrooms, thyme, and oregano and cook until mushrooms are tender, about 10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of the Madeira and scrape to deglaze the pan, about 1 minute. Set aside.

2 Heat chicken stock until it is steamy or simmering in a large saucepan and keep warm over low heat.

3 Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the rice; stir 2 minutes. Add remaining 1 cup Madeira. Cook, stirring constantly until Madeira has been absorbed, about 2 minutes. Ladle in a little hot stock, just enough to barely cover the rice; simmer until almost absorbed, stirring often, about 3 minutes. Continue to cook until rice is just tender and mixture is creamy, adding more stock by ladlefuls, stirring often and allowing most stock to be absorbed before adding more, until rice is tender, but still firm to the bite, about 20-25 minutes.

4 Stir in the sausage and mushrooms. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese to serve.

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Showing 4 of 16 Comments

lydia

Sounds like the perfect partnership — I would happily do the stirring, if someone else did the provisioning and prep! There is something quite rhythmic about making risotto, just like the rhythm of kneading bread.

Andy

This recipe sounds great! My fiance and I both love risotto and who doesn’t love Italian sausage? The only problem is she’s allergic to the large mushrooms (I found out the hard way on our first dinner date). She can eat the small button mushrooms, do you think this would taste ok with just them? I think I’ll make it anyway and see!

Hi Andy – I think you could easily replace the mushrooms mentioned here with button mushrooms or other types of mushrooms.

To Anonymous – We loved it! Basically, anything with those ingredients is going to end up high on our list.

Trig

Aah you can’t go wrong with sweet Italian sausage and portabello mushrooms, especially in a risotto. And the great thing about risotto is that it’s one of those meals for using up various bits and bobs around the kitchen, I always base mine on whatever I can find during my “risotto rummage”.